Savoury Polenta with Egg and Chilli

This has become somewhat of an obsession for me, this cheesy polenta/egg combo – for several reasons. It’s quick, you can make tons of it in advance, and it’s FRICKEN DELICIOUS.

I get asked a lot what to do with polenta to make it actually taste like food and not glue, and two of my hot tips are to pack it full of cheese, and to leave it cool before cutting it into pieces and frying them in butter and hot oil for crispy edges. As they say on Instagram, get you a girl who can do both.

So you’ve fried your cheesy polenta for smoodgy insides and crispy outers, topped it with a runny fried egg, and covered the lot in sharp green onions, either fresh or dried chilli, and a good pinch of sea salt and maaaate try and tell me this isn’t a dish for all meals and all seasons. It’s a Saturday morning staple here and that won’t be changing any time soon.

Savoury Polenta with Egg and Chilli

Description

An absolute breakfast staple, this cheesy polenta topped with fried egg and chilli is about to be your new best friend.

Ingredients

125g polenta

2 cups/500ml water

1 cup/250ml milk

50g salted butter

125g of your favourite sharp cheese

50g parmesan-style cheese

flaky sea salt and freshly ground pepper

1 large onion, peeled and diced

1/2 green capsicum, diced fine

2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

1-2 eggs per person

sliced green onions

sliced chilli or dried chilli flakes

Instructions

Bring the water to a boil in a large saucepan and add a pinch of salt

Pour in the polenta and milk and give it a good stir – I start with a whisk and end up with a rubber spatula

Reduce heat to a simmer and allow the polenta to absorb all the liquid. It’s going to take 35-45 minutes and should be soft and creamy, with no grittiness left. Stir from time to time and make sure you scrape the bottom so it doesn’t burn

When it’s creamy and ready to go, add the grated cheese, butter, and seasonings. Stir until cheese is melted and taste – you may need to add more cheese or salt. Or both.

While the polenta is cooking, saute the onion, garlic and green capsicum in olive oil over medium heat until softened and starting to brown. Set aside.

When the polenta has cooked, add the onion, garlic and capsicum, and stir to combine. Pour into a shallow dish (lined with baking paper for ease of removal) and leave in the fridge to set. You can leave this overnight for breakfast the next day.

When fully set, cut into slices and fry in a little butter and olive oil, turning occasionally until golden on all sides.